Secret Meetings are harmful

[Bay wolf]

Gentlemen,

I just listened to the Jan 6 podcast discussion of the Ten Year Harvest Plan. It was about one year ago that we at Washington Citizen Sportsmen sounded the alarm about deals that are cut in secret meetings. It has taken a lot of work and citizen support of our petition, but we are gaining strength.https://www.change.org/p/open-the-wdfw-tribal-nof?recruiter=468219262&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=copylink&utm_campaign=share_petition. We now have in the RMP the perfect example of how crafting deals without any public oversight can severely impact our sport and our community.

Yet, even though we have just seen a prime example of the results of secret deals, we are on the verge of allowing yet another North of Falcon process begin, wherein WDFW and the Tribes will sit behind locked doors and negotiate away our fish! THERE IS NO PLACE IN OUR FISHERIES MANAGEMENT FOR SECRET DEALS! WE MUST END THIS NOW!
Join the Fight! Sign the Petition and visit us on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/OpenNorthofFalcon/

[Nelly]

Thanks for your involvement 'Wolf.

Public secrecy is one thing and I can understand the need for some confidentiality until an intergovernmental tentative agreement is reached.

However, when the WDFW Wildlife Commission is kept out of the loop until AFTER the Director, who serves at the pleasure and under the direction of the Commission, signs a controversial, unwise and ultimately useless agreement.... Well, enough is enough.

I've been a lifelong supporter of WDFW and will continue to support and work with WDFW on a variety of issues but as far as the Puget Sound Chinook Resource Management Plan is concerned, I'm working as hard as I can to alter it.

However, I'm not going to stop there. I'm going to throw my support behind habitat enhancement projects on the Stillaguamish River and you're going to see opportunities on this site to help out as well.

Let's go to work!

[Sandlance]

As a note - there will be a conference call on Jan. 12 on the proposed management plan for harvesting Puget Sound Chinook salmon. As noted, "the public can listen to the work session, but there will be no opportunity for public comment". "To participate in the call, contact the Commission Office at 360-902-2267 or commission@dfw.wa.gov by 4 pm Thursday, Jan. 11".

Also noticed by WDFW, "additional discussion about the harvest management plan will take place during the commission's regularly scheduled meeting Jan. 18-20, at WDFW's regional office in Ridgefield". As a note to this meeting, it seems inappropriate to hold such a discussion so far away from Puget Sound as Ridgefield (which in on the Columbia River near Woodland, WA ).

[Bay wolf]

Nelly,
We agree, the confidentiality concept has been abused. When the Commission, who has Policy authority over the WDFW is intentionally left out of the details, so as to further insure that the public is kept in the dark, we have a BIG, BIG problem. The Commission was effectively neutered in a very public way by the actions of Director Unsworth and others who conspired to insure there was no public involvement in any way. There MUST be some repercussions for this! Further, we as a cohesive community must NOW agree that there is no room for secrets in our fisheries management. If one party feels they need secret negotiations so they are "comfortable in voicing there demands" then that is a red flag that their demands are probably not fair and equitable to the other co-manager! Like we've said from the very beginning. If you have nothing to hide, why hide!
We are equal under the laws. We should not be dictated to on how we will manage our fish. If the majority of the people want the meetings open, they should be open!

Lance: I believe the issue has to be covered at the Ridgefield meeting because it is so devastating as written that is has taken top priority! The location for the Commission meeting was picked long in advance to allow stakeholders in that area the opportunity to see and speak to their Commission.